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Summary
Noise is all around you, from televisions and radios to lawn mowers and washing machines. Normally, you hear these sounds at safe levels that don't affect hearing. But sounds that are too loud or loud sounds over a long time are harmful. They can damage sensitive structures of the inner ear and cause noise-induced hearing loss.
More than 30 million Americans are exposed to hazardous sound levels on a regular basis. Hazardous sound levels are louder than 80 decibels. That's not as loud as traffic on a busy street. Listening to loud music, especially on headphones, is a common cause of noise-induced hearing loss. You can protect your hearing by:
- Keeping the volume down when listening to music
- Wearing earplugs when using loud equipment
NIH: National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
- About Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
- Hearing: Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
- Noise Pollution (Environmental Protection Agency)
-
Noise-Induced Hearing Loss
(National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders)
Also in Spanish
Related Issues
-
Keeping Noise Down on the Farm
(National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders)
Also in Spanish
- Occupational Noise Exposure (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
Clinical Trials
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Noise
(National Institutes of Health)
Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
Children
- Can Loud Music Hurt My Ears? (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Teenagers
- Preventing Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Patient Handouts
- Acoustic trauma (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Hearing loss and music (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
The information on this site should not be used as a substitute for professional medical care or advice. Contact a health care provider if you have questions about your health.